Starpharma Partners with Genentech to Develop Innovative Cancer Therapies Using DEP Technology

Starpharma Holdings (ASX: SPL) has signed a collaboration and licence agreement with US-based company Genentech to develop innovative cancer therapies leveraging Starpharma’s proprietary DEP (dendrimer-enhanced product) drug delivery platform.

Dendrimers are precise, synthetically-manufactured molecules with unique properties – including size, structure, a high degree of branching, polyvalency, and water solubility – that can be advantageous in medical and pharmaceutical applications.

The partners will use the technology to generate dendrimer drug conjugates, incorporating Genentech medicines for certain oncology targets.

Product Commercialisation

Under the terms of the agreement, Genentech will be responsible for development and commercialisation of products resulting from the collaboration, which could include multiple products for each target.

Starpharma has granted Genentech an exclusive worldwide licence under its own intellectual property to commercialise any new products, and cannot generate new products directed to the selected targets for itself or any third parties.

Starpharma will receive an upfront $8.3 million payment from Genentech and can earn up to $855mn in development, regulatory and commercial milestone payments.

The company will also be eligible for tiered royalties on global net sales of products resulting from the collaboration.

‘Shared Commitment and Strengths’

Starpharma chief executive officer Cheryl Maley said Genentech was the ideal partner to advance DEP technology.

“This agreement recognises our dendrimer technology and its potential to benefit novel drug development and we look forward to working with Genentech to realise the advantages presented by our DEP platform,” she said.

“Building on three years of collaborative research, we are confident the shared commitment and strengths of both teams will enable effective execution, with the overarching goal of delivering meaningful patient outcomes.”

Drug Development Benefits

Starpharma’s DEP platform technology offers significant benefits in drug development including improved solubility, increased efficacy, pharmacokinetic control and improved toxicity profiles.

These advantages can be applied to a range of drug classes (including small molecules, peptides and proteins) and to the development of chemotherapeutics, radiotheranostics and antibody-drug conjugates.

The Genentech partnership presents both companies with opportunities to enhance product attributes by differentiating their portfolios and unlocking additional treatment indications.